Key articles

Workers Solidarity 96 - March/April 2007

Date: Mon, 2007-04-23 16:15

The March/April 2007 issue of Workers Solidarity is now online and can be downloaded as a PDF file.

Contents
Public Health not Private Wealth
Water Tax:Northern parties united in collusion,
Spring clean shell out of Erris
Your money or your life?
Thats capitalism - WS96
Anarchism and the WSM
Partnership delivers more work for less pay
Thinking about anarchism: Exploitation
Fianna Fail to Perform Miracle of Full Employment
15 Years After the X-Case Bertie Still Lies About Abortion
Sinn Fein Learn to Love the Police
There’s no such thing as a ‘free’ computer

Public Health not Private Wealth
We all know that the health service is in a terrible state. Elderly patients on trolleys and in chairs for days while they wait for a bed. Operations cancelled, stressed staff, people having to wait years just to see a consultant. -

Water Tax:Northern parties united in collusion, Communities united in opposition
It's like the topsy-turvy world of George Orwell's "1984" where politicians engage in "double-speak" by saying they are doing one thing, while in fact doing exactly the opposite. Nobody could think the Water Charges are a fair way to pay for the upkeep of the dilapidated water and sewage system that the State has neglected for decades. The Anti-Poverty Network has calculated that 37% of the household rates we already pay goes towards their upkeep. -

Spring clean shell out of Erris
The Shell to Sea campaign has already kicked back into gear in the new year, motivated that 2007 will finally be the year when Shell is forced to refine the gas offshore. It would be wrong, however, to think that the holiday season has been a quiet, relaxing time for the community of Rossport threatened with the dangerous pipeline. -

Your money or your life?
In January 2005, Michael X, a courier driver, went to see his GP complaining of recurrent diarrhoea and passing some blood. Following an examination, his GP sent a letter to arrange for an appointment with a gastro-enterologist for specialist assessment. His appointment arrived in the post - he could see the consultant in July, six months later. -

Thats capitalism - WS96
Slaving your life away just so you can make ends meet; having no say in the major decisions that affect your life; criminal politicians and businessmen plundering the country.

Anarchism and the WSM
The Workers Solidarity Movement is an organisation of working class anarchists who have come together to maximise the impact of anarchist ideas.

Partnership delivers more work for less pay
Irish Universities are increasingly seeing their primary role as being that of a moneymaking corporation rather than centres of education and knowledge. This isn't too good for the vast majority of students but it also is bad news for most of the workers in the colleges as well.

Thinking about anarchism: Exploitation
Exploitation is an easy enough concept to grasp. It is essentially, when someone does not receive the full returns to their labour. That is when they do not receive the full benefit from their activities.

Fianna Fail to Perform Miracle of Full Employment
Seamus Brennan is a little man in many ways, but one thing he dislikes is not being in the limelight. So in this election year, the Social Affairs minister has decided to drive the last 150,000 people from the live register of the unemployed. Like some figure from the old testament Seamie will perform the miracle of full employment to prove his worth, He will drive the unemployed into the arms of the awaiting super exploitative bosses.

Sinn Fein Learn to Love the Police
There was no surprise when Sinn Fein voted to support the PSNI, the republican leadership does not usually put anything to a vote unless they are already pretty sure of the result. This does not mean they found it easy, it was a bitter pill for them to swallow. The IRA used to shoot cops and the cops used to shoot them. Now they have to ask their supporters to assist the PSNI, even join them. - http://www.wsm.ie/story/2302

There’s no such thing as a ‘free’ computer
Anyone who has had a child in primary school over the past couple of years has no doubt heard of the ‘Tesco Computers for Schools’ scheme whereby in return for vouchers collected when you do your shopping, Tesco give ‘free’ computer equipment to schools. You’ve probably also heard about Tesco’s ‘Sport For Schools and Clubs’ and SuperValu’s ‘Kids in Action’ schemes. If you’ve seen the TV ads for the SuperValu version, you’ll probably associate SuperValu with healthy, happy kids. - http://www.wsm.ie/story/1889

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